Matt Johnson

May 22 Happy 77th Birthday, Mick Tingelhoff It's the birthday of longtime Vikings center (1962-'78) and 2015 Hall of Fame inductee Mick Tingelhoff, born in Lexington, Nebraska in 1940. May 22 Happy 74th Birthday, Tommy John It's the birthday of 26-year major league pitcher and 1994 Minnesota Twins broadcaster Tommy John, born in Terre Haute, Indiana in 1943. Consider this: with 21 major league seasons under his belt, LaTroy Hawkins is only the fourth-longest-tenured pitcher to share the booth with Dick Bremer. May 22, 1987 Twins Sign Free Agent Catcher Butera The Twins sign free agent catcher Sal Butera, who had previously played for the club from 1980-'82. Salvatore played just 51 games that season, but there are no small roles on a World Series Championship team. May 22, 2009 Michael Cuddyer Hits for the Cycle The day after snapping a six-game losing streak with a 20-1 road win versus the White Sox, the Twins returned home to the Dome, beating the Brewers 11-3. The Twins had outscored their opponents by 27 runs over the past two days. Michael Cuddyer, who had four hits the previous day in Chicago, hit for the cycle versus the Brewers, going 4-for-5 with five RBI and two runs scored, making him 8-for-11 with eight RBI and six runs over the past two days. He hit a three-run home run in the first inning, driving in Mauer and Morneau. Cuddy completed the cycle with an RBI triple to left, driving in Morneau, putting the Twins up 11-1. Cuddyer grounded out in his final at-bat. No Twin has hit for the cycle since.

May 20, 1970 Carew Hits for First Cycle in Twins History Rod Carew hit for the first cycle in Twins history in a 10-5 win in Kansas City. He completed the cycle with an eighth-inning triple, driving in Cesar Tovar. Carew was 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored on the day. After Carew’s triple, St. Cloud Cathedral High School graduate and future-Twin Tom Burgmeier came in to finish the game for KC. Ten Twins have hit for the cycle: Carew (1970), Cesar Tovar (‘72), Larry Hisle (‘76), Lyman Bostock (‘76), Mike Cubbage (‘78), Gary Ward (‘80), Kirby Puckett (‘86), Carlos Gomez (‘08), Jason Kubel (‘09) and Michael Cuddyer (‘09). May 20, 1984 Clemens Earns First Win In his second major league start, Roger Clemens earned the first of his 354 career victories, allowing four runs on seven hits and a walk over seven innings in a 5-4 Red Sox win at the Metrodome. With two out in the bottom of the sixth, Tom Brunansky hit the first of the 363 home runs that the Rocket would allow over his 24-year career. May 20, 1986 Keith Atherton Acquired from Oakland The Twins traded a player to be named later and cash to Oakland for pitcher Keith Atherton. The player to be named wound up being minor league pitcher Eric Broersma, who never made it to the majors. Atherton, on the other hand, pitched in 62 games for the 1987 Twins, including Games 1 and 5 of the World Series. May 20, 1989 Randy Bush Collects Twins Record 8 RBI Randy Bush drove in a eight runs in a 19-3 win in Texas, tying the Twins' single-game record set by Glenn Adams on June 26, 1977. Six of those RBI came in the final two innings of the game, as Bush hit three-run home runs in the eighth and ninth. He was 3-for-4 with a walk, eight RBI (one on a sac fly) and two runs scored on the day. Leadoff hitter Dan Gladden tied a major league record with seven plate appearances in the game, going 1-for-7 with an RBI and run scored. Two players have driven in 12 runs in a game, both playing for the St. Louis Cardinals. Hall of Fame first baseman Jim Bottomley did so versus the Dodgers at Ebbets Field in 1924. And, in 1993, Hard Hittin’ Mark Whiten drove in 12 of the Cardinals’ 15 runs with four home runs, including a first-inning grand slam, versus the Cincinnati Reds. May 20, 1994 16 Bat in 11-Run Inning Already beating Boston 10-1 at the Metrodome going into the bottom of the fifth, the Twins sent 16 men to the plate, tying a team record established in the tenth inning on June 21, 1969. Alex Cole, the seventh Twin to the plate, made both the first and last outs of the inning. The Twins tied team records for runs in an inning (11), hits (10) and consecutive hits (8). Kirby Puckett had a huge day, going 3-for-3 with a HR in the fifth, seven RBI and a run scored. DH Dave Winfield was only Twins starter without a hit. The Twins won 21-2, improving to 21-19 on the season. May 20, 1995 Marty Cordova Homers in Fifth Consecutive Game Marty Cordova tied a Twins record, homering in his fifth consecutive game as Scott Erickson and the Twins fell to Lou Piniella’s Seattle Mariners 10-6 at the Metrodome. Cordova would hit a career-high 24 home runs in 1995 en route to being voted the American League’s Rookie of the Year. Harmon Killebrew homered in five consecutive games on two separate occasions during the Twins’ 1970 Division Championship season. Twenty players have homered in at least six consecutive games. Barry Bonds is the only player with two such streaks, homering in six straight in 2001 and seven straight in ‘04. Jim Thome homered in seven straight for Cleveland in 2002. The major league record for consecutive games with a home run is eight. Pittsburgh’s Dale Long did so in 1956, followed by Don Mattingly in 1987, and Ken Griffey Jr. in 1993. May 20, 2005 Silva Throws 74-Pitch Complete Game Carlos Silva allowed just one run on five hits, no walks and three strikeouts in a complete game 7-1 Twins win over Milwaukee at the Metrodome. Silva needed only 74 pitches to complete the game, an average of 8.2 per inning. Second baseman Nick Punto wwent 4-for-4 with an RBI and run scored. The Twins had 16 hits as a team. The only Twin without a hit was Torii Hunter, though he did drive in Punto with a sac fly. May 20, 2011 Twins Attend Funeral of Harmon Killebrew Putting a silver lining around an otherwise sad situation, the Twins were in town to play the Arizona Diamondbacks and able to attend the funeral of Harmon Killebrew, who had passed away three days earlier. Bert Blyleven spoke at the funeral, while Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, Frank Quilici, Joe Nathan, Michael Cuddyer, Justin Morneau, Ron Gardenhire and Paul Molitor served as pallbearers. May 20, 2012 Drew Butera Pitches a Scoreless Inning Trailing 16-4 in Milwaukee, Ron Gardenhire called on Drew Butera to pitch the bottom of the eighth. Butera pitched a scoreless, hitless frame, walking one and striking out Carlos Gomez. Drew threw several pitches in the 90s, topping out at 94 on the radar gun. While playing with the Dodgers in 2014, Butera pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning versus the Miami Marlins. He pitched again for Los Angeles just three days later, this time giving up a two-run HR to Paul Goldschmidt as he recorded the final two outs of the game. Drew’s dad, fellow catcher Sal Butera, did not allow a hit in his two major league pitching appearances. He pitched a 1-2-3 inning in his big league pitching debut for Montreal in 1985. In 1986 he pitched a scoreless ninth for the Cincinnati Reds, walking one and striking out one. May 21 Happy 57th Birthday, Kent Hrbek! It's the birthday of 1978 Bloomington Kennedy graduate Kent Hrbek, born in Minneapolis in 1960. The Twins drafted Hrbie in the 17th round out of high school. Only Harmon Killebrew and Kirby Puckett have played more games in a Twins uniform. The big 6'4" first baseman made his major league debut on August 24, 1981 at Yankee Stadium, hitting a game-winning home run off of George Frazier leading off the twelfth. Hrbek made his only All-Star team in 1982, and finished second to Cal Ripken, Jr. for American League Rookie of the Year. Hrbek drove in 107 runs in 1984 and finished second to Tigers pitcher Willie Hernandez for American League MVP. He hit three grand slams in 1985, tying Bob Allison, Rod Carew, Kirby Puckett, and Torii Hunter for the Twins' single season record. The 34 home runs Hrbek hit in 1987 are the most ever by a Twins lefty. His grand slam in Game 6 of the 1987 World Series is an iconic moment in Twins history. His reaction after catching Gary Gaetti's throw for the final out of Game 7 is immortalized in bronze outside Gate 14 at Target Field. Hrbek retired following the strike-shortened '94 season. His 239 HRs and 1,086 RBI are second in Twins history to only Harmon Killebrew. His 1,749 hits rank sixth behind Kirby Puckett, Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, and Joe Mauer. The Twins retired Hrbek's #14 on August 13, 1995. May 21, 1967 First 4-Extra-Base Hit Game in Twins History Cesar Tovar had the Twins' first four-extra-base hit game in a 12-3 win versus the Angels in California. Tovar, the Twins' leadoff hitter, hit two doubles and two HRs. He went 4-for-6 on the day, improving his batting average to .323. Tony Oliva went 3-for-4 with two doubles. Oliva would lead the American League with 34 doubles, with Tovar coming in second with 32. Kirby Puckett (1987 and '89), Rich Becker (1996), Corey Koskie (2001) and Michael Cuddyer (2005) have since tied Tovar's record of four extra-base hits in a single game. Eight players in major league history have hit five extra-base hits in a game. May 21, 1981 Viola Wins Greatest College Game Ever After Yale's Ron Darling pitched 11 no-hit innings, Frank Viola and St. John's University win it in the twelfth. May 21, 2009 Twins Snap Losing Streak with Blowout Win The Twins snapped a six-game losing streak, beating the White Sox 20-1 in the series finale in Chicago. The Twins collected 20 hits and five walks in the game. Bartolo Colon took the loss, giving up eight runs on seven hits and two walks in just two innings. Michael Cuddyer went 4-for-6. Designated Hitter Joe Mauer hit a grand slam in the Twins' six-run sixth inning. It was already his eighth home run of the season. He would go on to hit 28 in 2009 en route to being voted the American League's Most Valuable Player. Keep in touch with @TwinsAlmanac on Twitter.

May 18th and 19th in Twins history feature Rod Carew and Billy Martin terrorizing Detroit pitchers, one of the signature "accomplishments" of the Ron Davis Era, Bruno having a big day (for the wrong team) and a pinch-hit grand slam from a Twin about whom you may have forgotten. Here we go:May 18, 1969 Rod Carew Steals Second, Third, and Home With the Billy Martin-managed Twins trailing 2-0 in Detroit, Cesar Tovar led off the bottom of third with a single off of Mickey Lolich. Then, with Rod Carew at the plate, Tovar was balked to second and stole third. Perhaps distracted by Tovar, Lolich walked Carew. Then, with Harmon Killebrew at the plate, the Twins executed a double steal, with Carew swiping second as Tovar stole home. With Killebrew still at bat, Carew stole third and home to tie the game. Killebrew ultimately struck out, and the Twins went on to lose the game 8-2. They would, however, go on to win the division but were beat in the League Championship Series by Baltimore. Forty players have stolen second, third and home consecutively a total of 50 times in MLB history, 11 since 1940. The feet was accomplished four times in the '80s, twice in the '90s, once in the '00s, and, most recently, by Dee Gordon in 2011. Paul Molitor pulled it off in the first inning versus Oakland on July 26, 1987. May 19, 1982 Twins Begin Record Losing Streak The Twins lose 4-2 in Baltimore, beginning a team-record 14-game losing streak. They won't win again until June 4. They will lose eight games on the road, and six at home in the Dome. Ron Davis and Brad Havens will each pick up three of the losses. The Yankees' Goose Gossage, on the other hand, will pick up two wins and two saves. May 19, 1990 Tom Brunansky’s Big Day The Twins had an ugly day at Fenway. The Red Sox’s Tom Brunansky drew first blood, driving in Wade Boggs with a one-out double in the first. The Red Sox went on to score five runs on five hits in the first off of Twins starter Allan Anderson, who only lasted ⅔ of an inning. Brunansky went 5-for-5 with two home runs, seven RBI, and three runs scored as the Red Sox pummeled the Twins 13-1. Tom Kelly called upon outfielder John Moses to pitch the bottom of the eighth. He gave up just one run on two hits in his second pitching appearance for the Twins. His previous appearance had also come at Fenway in 1989 as he pitched a scoreless eighth inning, not allowing a hit but walking one. He would pitch a third time for the Twins in July, 1990. May 19, 2004 Matt LeCroy Hits Game-Winning Pinch-Hit Grand Slam Trailing 2-5 in the top of the ninth in Toronto with Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, and Henry Blanco on base and one out, the Twins sent Matt LeCroy out to pinch-hit for third baseman Alex Prieto. LeCroy hit the Blue Jays' Terry Adams' 1-0 pitch out of the park, giving the Twins a one-run lead. Joe Nathan put the Jays down in order in the bottom of the ninth, earning his 13th save of the season. LeCroy's is the most recent of twelve pinch-hit grand slams in Twins history. Rich Reese hit three pinch-hit grand slams during his Twins career. The Twins as a team hit two in 1970, one each by Reese and Rick Renick. Keep in touch with the @TwinsAlmanac on Twitter. Click here to view the article

May 18, 1969 Rod Carew Steals Second, Third, and Home With the Billy Martin-managed Twins trailing 2-0 in Detroit, Cesar Tovar led off the bottom of third with a single off of Mickey Lolich. Then, with Rod Carew at the plate, Tovar was balked to second and stole third. Perhaps distracted by Tovar, Lolich walked Carew. Then, with Harmon Killebrew at the plate, the Twins executed a double steal, with Carew swiping second as Tovar stole home. With Killebrew still at bat, Carew stole third and home to tie the game. Killebrew ultimately struck out, and the Twins went on to lose the game 8-2. They would, however, go on to win the division but were beat in the League Championship Series by Baltimore. Forty players have stolen second, third and home consecutively a total of 50 times in MLB history, 11 since 1940. The feet was accomplished four times in the '80s, twice in the '90s, once in the '00s, and, most recently, by Dee Gordon in 2011. Paul Molitor pulled it off in the first inning versus Oakland on July 26, 1987. May 19, 1982 Twins Begin Record Losing Streak The Twins lose 4-2 in Baltimore, beginning a team-record 14-game losing streak. They won't win again until June 4. They will lose eight games on the road, and six at home in the Dome. Ron Davis and Brad Havens will each pick up three of the losses. The Yankees' Goose Gossage, on the other hand, will pick up two wins and two saves. May 19, 1990 Tom Brunansky’s Big Day The Twins had an ugly day at Fenway. The Red Sox’s Tom Brunansky drew first blood, driving in Wade Boggs with a one-out double in the first. The Red Sox went on to score five runs on five hits in the first off of Twins starter Allan Anderson, who only lasted ⅔ of an inning. Brunansky went 5-for-5 with two home runs, seven RBI, and three runs scored as the Red Sox pummeled the Twins 13-1. Tom Kelly called upon outfielder John Moses to pitch the bottom of the eighth. He gave up just one run on two hits in his second pitching appearance for the Twins. His previous appearance had also come at Fenway in 1989 as he pitched a scoreless eighth inning, not allowing a hit but walking one. He would pitch a third time for the Twins in July, 1990. May 19, 2004 Matt LeCroy Hits Game-Winning Pinch-Hit Grand Slam Trailing 2-5 in the top of the ninth in Toronto with Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, and Henry Blanco on base and one out, the Twins sent Matt LeCroy out to pinch-hit for third baseman Alex Prieto. LeCroy hit the Blue Jays' Terry Adams' 1-0 pitch out of the park, giving the Twins a one-run lead. Joe Nathan put the Jays down in order in the bottom of the ninth, earning his 13th save of the season. LeCroy's is the most recent of twelve pinch-hit grand slams in Twins history. Rich Reese hit three pinch-hit grand slams during his Twins career. The Twins as a team hit two in 1970, one each by Reese and Rick Renick. Keep in touch with the @TwinsAlmanac on Twitter.

In Twins history, May 17th has included a breakthrough game, a visit by a home run legend, a perfect game to forget and the final departure of perhaps the greatest Twin of all time.May 17, 1963 Allison Has Twins' First 3-HR Game Bob Allison became the first Minnesota Twin to hit three home runs in a game in an 11-4 Twins win in Cleveland. He was 3-for-5 on the day with six RBI. His batting average at the end of the day was .330. He would finish his All-Star ‘63 season with a .271 AVG, 35 HRs, and 91 RBI. Harmon Killebrew and Zoilo Versalles also hit home runs in the game. Pitcher Jim Perry, who had played for Cleveland the previous season, was 2-for-3 with a walk and scored on Allison’s first home run. May 17, 1975 Aaron Brings Hammer to Bloomington Milwaukee Brewers designated hitter Hank Aaron hit the 738th of his 755 career home runs off of the Twins' Ray Corbin in the fifth inning of a Saturday afternoon game at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The two-run home run extended the Brewers' lead to 6-2. Aaron had hit an RBI double in the third, knocking Twins starting pitcher Vic Albury out of the game. The Twins trailed just 6-7 in the bottom of the eighth when Rod Carew hit a two-out, two-run double. Tom Kelly entered one of his 49 major league games playing first base in the top of the ninth. The Twins held on to win 8-7. May 17, 1998 David Wells Pitches a Perfect Game 50,000 fans, including Billy Crystal, came out to Yankee Stadium for Beanie Baby Day, and what turned out to be the fifteenth perfect game in major league history. David Wells threw 120 pitches, striking out 11. The last perfect game at Yankee Stadium was Game 5 of the 1956 World Series by Don Larsen, who attended the same high school as Wells, Point Loma in San Diego. Don Larsen actually threw out the first pitch before baseball’s next perfect game, pitched by David Cone in 1999 on Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium. Berra had caught Larsen's perfect game in the '56 Series. Cone threw only 88 pitches in his perfect game. The major leagues’ first two perfect games were pitched in 1880, just five days apart. The next perfect game wasn’t pitched until 1904 by the Boston Americans’ Cy Young. The most recent perfect game was pitched by the Mariners’ Felix Hernandez on August 15, 2012. May 17, 2011 Harmon Killebrew Passes Away Minnesota Twins legend Harmon Killebrew passed away at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona on this date in 2011. He was just 74 years old. Click here to view the article

May 17, 1963 Allison Has Twins' First 3-HR Game Bob Allison became the first Minnesota Twin to hit three home runs in a game in an 11-4 Twins win in Cleveland. He was 3-for-5 on the day with six RBI. His batting average at the end of the day was .330. He would finish his All-Star ‘63 season with a .271 AVG, 35 HRs, and 91 RBI. Harmon Killebrew and Zoilo Versalles also hit home runs in the game. Pitcher Jim Perry, who had played for Cleveland the previous season, was 2-for-3 with a walk and scored on Allison’s first home run. May 17, 1975 Aaron Brings Hammer to Bloomington Milwaukee Brewers designated hitter Hank Aaron hit the 738th of his 755 career home runs off of the Twins' Ray Corbin in the fifth inning of a Saturday afternoon game at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The two-run home run extended the Brewers' lead to 6-2. Aaron had hit an RBI double in the third, knocking Twins starting pitcher Vic Albury out of the game. The Twins trailed just 6-7 in the bottom of the eighth when Rod Carew hit a two-out, two-run double. Tom Kelly entered one of his 49 major league games playing first base in the top of the ninth. The Twins held on to win 8-7. May 17, 1998 David Wells Pitches a Perfect Game 50,000 fans, including Billy Crystal, came out to Yankee Stadium for Beanie Baby Day, and what turned out to be the fifteenth perfect game in major league history. David Wells threw 120 pitches, striking out 11. The last perfect game at Yankee Stadium was Game 5 of the 1956 World Series by Don Larsen, who attended the same high school as Wells, Point Loma in San Diego. Don Larsen actually threw out the first pitch before baseball’s next perfect game, pitched by David Cone in 1999 on Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium. Berra had caught Larsen's perfect game in the '56 Series. Cone threw only 88 pitches in his perfect game. The major leagues’ first two perfect games were pitched in 1880, just five days apart. The next perfect game wasn’t pitched until 1904 by the Boston Americans’ Cy Young. The most recent perfect game was pitched by the Mariners’ Felix Hernandez on August 15, 2012. May 17, 2011 Harmon Killebrew Passes Away Minnesota Twins legend Harmon Killebrew passed away at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona on this date in 2011. He was just 74 years old. Be well, do good work, and keep in touch with the @TwinsAlmanac on Twitter.